A deep breath and I broke into a slow jog. The other four were well ahead of me. I didn’t bother to catch up. I just ran. If experience had taught me anything, it was that you couldn’t be the best at everything. It had to be two miles around, easily, and I wasn’t even halfway through the first lap before I slowed to a walk. A tap of bones to the right of me caught my ears.

I didn’t have to look. “Robert.”

“Friend.”

“You scare that spider away at Centennial Park?”

“Yessss.”

“Thanks.”

“Friend.”

I gave him a thumbs-up. “Friend. One of few, I’m sorry to say.” I didn’t have many friends in Savannah. My gran had been the center of my world here, and I’d never really socialized with kids my age. I’d been too busy learning about the shadow world when I wasn’t at school.

I looked over then, feeling a sudden gush of fondness for Robert, but he was gone, and I knew why as one of the boys lapped me. He didn’t bump into me, but the next little turd did—on purpose.

Just a bump of shoulders. Enough to throw me off balance—physically.

He flipped me off as he ran backward. “You’re going to fall pulling a stunt like that,” I said.

Robert crawled out behind him and the kid yelped as he went flying backward. Robert melted into the ground, and I winked in his direction.

Lapped again, and again, I kept jogging and walked only when I couldn’t do it anymore. It was of mild consolation that the leather was comfortable, and about as breathable as leather would probably ever be.

I finished an hour after the other trainees, and things just went downhill from there.

They did rope climbs.

I hung from the ropes and prayed I could just hold on.

They sparred with each other, using their weapons.

I wasn’t allowed to touch mine.

They did squats holding weights; I just squatted and prayed I wouldn’t pee my nice new pants. Part of me wished I’d been doing Kegels more regularly—or at all. Weren’t Kegels supposed to make it so you didn’t pee yourself?

Six hours rolled by, and at two in the morning, the physical part of the training was finally over. I lay flat on my back on the floor, staring up at the underside of a graveyard. I’d only puked twice. Go me.

Corb leaned over me. “You ready to give up?”

I looked straight up his nose. “You missed some hairs in the left nostril.” His nose flared. I pointed. “That flaring business is just making the long ones flutter. I mean, if you care about stuff like that.”

Eammon cleared his throat. “We will break early for the night. Be here at six p.m. tomorrow.”